Astronomy picture of the day - 2016 August 17 - Meteor before Galaxy

Meteor before Galaxy 
Image Credit & Copyright: Fritz Helmut Hemmerich

Explanation: What's that green streak in front of the Andromeda galaxy? A meteor. While photographing the Andromeda galaxy last Friday, near the peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower, a sand-sized rock from deep space crossed right in front of our Milky Way Galaxy's far-distant companion. The small meteor took only a fraction of a second to pass through this 10-degree field. The meteor flared several times while braking violently upon entering Earth's atmosphere. The green color was created, at least in part, by the meteor's gas glowing as it vaporized. Although the exposure was timed to catch a Perseids meteor, the orientation of the imaged streak seems a better match to a meteor from the Southern Delta Aquariids, a meteor shower that peaked a few weeks earlier.

Fotos - Palacio de S. Clemente - Rio de Janeiro

"Vista interior no Palacio de S. Clemente"

Rio, 07-03-2012

JoanMira

Fotos - Aeroporto Santos Dumont - Rio de Janeiro

"Aeroporto Santos Dumont, RJ"

27-07-2012

JoanMira

Astronomy picture of the day - 2016 August 16 - Five Planets and the Moon over Australia

Five Planets and the Moon over Australia 
Image Credit & Copyright: Alex Cherney (Terrastro, TWAN)

Explanation: It is not a coincidence that planets line up. That's because all of the planets orbit the Sun in (nearly) a single sheet called the plane of the ecliptic. When viewed from inside that plane -- as Earth dwellers are likely to do -- the planets all appear confined to a single band. It is a coincidence, though, when several of the brightest planets all appear in nearly the same direction. Such a coincidence was captured just last week. Featured above, six planets and Earth's Moon were all imaged together last week, just before sunset, from Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. A second band is visible across the top of this tall image -- the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy.

Tom Jobim - "Chega de saudade" - Video - Music - Live

"Chega de saudade"

Imagens do Mundo - Sitios lindos de Portugal - Arco da Rua Augusta, Lisboa

Imagens do Mundo - Sitios lindos de Portugal - Arrabida

O Parque Natural da Arrábida é um verdadeiro tesouro natural. O Parque Natural da Arrábida alia as mais belas paisagens de Serra da Arrábida com praias magníficas como a do Portinho da Arrábida. Um paraíso às portas da capital.

Imagens do Mundo - Sitios lindos de Portugal - Sintra

Sintra é uma vila que mais parece saída de um conto de fadas. A sua paisagem verde é entrecortada aqui e ali por majestosos monumentos. O palácio de Sintra é um dos monumentos Portugueses mais conhecidos internacionalmente e estabelece-se por vezes comparação com o famoso palácio alemão Neuschwanstein, que inspirou os castelos da Walt Disney.

Fotos do passado - Costa de Caparica, Portugal, 1980

Costa de Caparica em 1980

Astronomy picture of the day - 2016 August 15 - Human as Spaceship

Human as Spaceship 
Space Image Credit: NASA, ESA, Hubble, and J. Maiz- Apellániz (IAA); Acknowledgement: D. De Martin;
Human Image Copyright: Charis Tsevis; Composition: R. J. Nemiroff

Explanation: You are a spaceship soaring through the universe. So is your dog. We all carry with us trillions of microorganisms as we go through life. These multitudes of bacteria, fungi, and archaea have different DNA than you. Collectively called your microbiome, your shipmates outnumber your own cells. Your crew members form communities, help digest food, engage in battles against intruders, and sometimes commute on a liquid superhighway from one end of your body to the other. Much of what your microbiome does, however, remains unknown. You are the captain, but being nice to your crew may allow you to explore more of your local cosmos.